Ramos Won’t Face Action Over Doping Claims

Real Madrid’s Sergio Ramos will not face disciplinary action after a report alleged he had been involved in irregularities during anti-doping controls on two occasions, sources have told ESPN FC.

The report by Der Spiegel, based on Football Leaks documents, claimed Ramos tested positive for a prohibited substance after the 2017 Champions League final and did not follow correct procedures when called for a routine test after a game at Malaga in April.

UEFA sources told ESPN FC last weekend that it and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) accepted an explanation by Madrid that what happened at the Champions League final had been due to an administrative error, with the club doctor writing the wrong medication name on the doping control form.

Sources at both La Liga and the Spanish Football federation (RFEF) have told ESPN FC they will not take action over the Malaga test because Spain’s anti-doping agency AEPSAD has not passed them evidence of wrongdoing.

An AEPSAD source denied a claim in AS on Tuesday that its director Jose Luis Terreros had personally decided not to pursue a case against Ramos despite WADA testing protocol having been broken when the defender showered before a test.

After Ramos tweeted on Saturday that an “official allowed me to shower,” Der Spiegel published what it said was a letter sent to Madrid by AEPSAD in September, in which a doping official said no such permission had been given.

ESPN FC has been told that the letter is authentic and was part of an investigation carried out by AEPSAD.

The investigation culminated in Terreros deciding that, after reviewing the relevant information, no disciplinary action needed to be taken.

An RFEF spokesperson said there were no plans to investigate Ramos as the governing body had received no notification of any irregularities and has no jurisdiction over anti-doping matters in Spanish football under Spanish law.

Speaking on Saturday, Ramos described the Football Leaks claims as “lies,” and ahead of Madrid’s Champions League game at Roma on Tuesday, coach Santi Solari said the defender was “an honest man.”